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alternative modernity
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versions of modernity shaped by local social and cultural forms.
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animal domestication
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the processing of animal products for use as food, textiles, and tools.
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balanced reciprocity
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the practice building social relationships through the exchange of gifts of roughly equal value.
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band
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a form of social organization associated with gatherer-hunter societies. Bands are relatively small, often around 50 people, ideal for a nomadic or seminomadic lifestyle.
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colonialism
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the political domination of another country in the interest of economic exploitation.
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commodity fetishism
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the association of commodities with magical powers of personal transformation.
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cultivation
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basic manipulation of nature, such as the intentional growing of plants.
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egalitarian
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emphasizing equality and sharing.
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extensive horticulture
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a form of plant cultivation in which new plots are regularly cleared, prepared with digging sticks or hoes, and fertilized with animal dung, ash, or other natural products.
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extensive or shifting cultivation
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a horticultural practice in which plots of land are farmed for a period of time, then left to lie fallow as farmers move on to cultivate other plots.
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fallow
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describes a plot of land that is not cultivated for a period of time so that wild vegetation may grow in naturally.
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gathering-hunting
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the mode of subsistence in which people rely on resources readily available in their environment. Gathering-hunting peoples collect fruits, nuts, berries, and roots and harvest honey. They also hunt and trap wild animals.
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general-purpose money
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money that can be exchanged for a wide variety of goods and services.
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generalized reciprocity
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the practice of sharing without regard for the value of objects or interest in compensation.
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globalization
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the dramatic increase in global processes of production and consumption since the 1970s.
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humus
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organic matter in soil formed by the decomposition of plants.
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hxaro
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a friendship developed through gift exchange, practiced among the Dobe Ju/’hoansi and other San groups of the Kalahari.
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industrialism
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the mode of subsistence that uses wage labor, machines, and chemical processes to mass-produce commodities.
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intensive agriculture
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a form of plant cultivation in which one plot is farmed over and over again using labor-intensive methods such as plowing, terracing, and irrigation.
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intercropping
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planting certain species of plants side by side to enhance their health and growth.
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markets
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institutions that allow for buyers and sellers to meet for the purposes of economic exchange.
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mode of subsistence
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a way in which people interact with the environment to meet their needs. Each mode of subsistence involves its own forms of knowledge, techniques, technologies, and social organization.
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modernity
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the complex of sociocultural features associated with industrial society.
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money
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a medium of exchange, unit of account, and store of value.
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monumental architecture
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large structures built for public viewing or use, such as pyramids, temples, sports arenas, and coliseums.
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nomadism
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the practice of moving frequently in search of resources.
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pastoralism
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the mode of subsistence associated with the care and use of herd animals.
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peasants
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small-plot farmers incorporated into larger regional economies, often states.
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plant domestication
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the process of adapting wild plants for human use.
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postmodernity
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the cultural shift associated with postindustrialism.
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potlatch
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a feast in which a trove of gifts is presented by the host chief to the guest chief in order to demonstrate wealth and gain prestige.
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precarity
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physical and psychological harm caused by lack of secure and stable income.
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redistribution
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a system whereby goods are collected and stored by a leader and later given out or used for public benefit.
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seminomadic
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the practice of settling in one place for a period of time, usually a few weeks, then moving to a new site to find fresh resources.
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sexual division of labor
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the assignment of work based on a person’s sex.
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slash and burn
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the technique of preparing a new plot by cutting down the trees and shrubs, burning the vegetation to the ground, then tilling the ash into the soil as fertilizer.
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special-purpose money
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money that is exchanged for specific items or services.
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surplus
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amount of harvest left over after supplying the needs of the household.
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time-space compression
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the postmodern feeling that time is speeding up and global space is shrinking.
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transhumance
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a technique practiced by many pastoralist groups that combines a settled lifestyle with routine movement. Societies that practice transhumance may move between two permanent settlements in an annual cycle. Another transhumance strategy involves most people residing in a settlement and sending a smaller group out to pasture the animals at certain times of the year.
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universalism
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the belief that social systems have operated roughly the same way all over the world at all times past and present.
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usufruct rights
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rights to use a resource but not to own or sell it.